Trojans survive Colusa's game effort

For the first 16 minutes of Colusa High's boys basketball Homecoming game, the RedHawks stirred the crowded gym into a frenzy by keeping pace with a taller, more experienced Durham team.

And though the youthful RedHawks faltered in the second half, losing 55-37, it was a memorable Homecoming night.

Moments before the game started, Nicolas Pillay was chosen by his peers as the Homecoming King and was greeted with boisterous cheers as the senior guard joined Homecoming Queen Mayte Jimenez at mid-court.

Once the game started it was sophomore newcomer R.J. Phillips who energized the crowd and jump-started the offense with a smooth fadeaway as he led the RedHawks in scoring during the first quarter.

Senior Cyrus Yerxa got the packed house back on its feet in the second quarter by scoring the RedHawks' first 12 points of the period - including connecting on his first three 3-point attempts of the game - before fellow senior Tyler Martin scored a basket to pull Colusa within three points with a minute remaining in the half.

"I am so proud of (Yerxa), I mean, all of the things that we've asked him to do this year — post up, shoulder the scoring load, rebound, be a leader - he's done," Colusa coach Marty Remmers said.

As the first half drew to a close, Durham (13-9, 5-2 SVL) began to show signs of why it is the No. 2 team in a strong Sacramento Valley League. The Trojans scored the final five points of the half and entered the locker room with a 31-23 lead.

When the RedHawks (10-11, 0-7 SVL) re-entered the court for the third quarter, reality began to set in and the Trojans defense clamped down.

"I think (Durham) realized that they'd better pick it up and our guys were like, 'Wait a minute, we're in this thing' and the moment kind of hit them and we didn't respond the way we should have," Remmers said.

Colusa didn't score in the third quarter until Yerxa tickled the bottom of the net with a desperation fadeaway three-pointer from well behind the arc at the buzzer, but the damage was already done - Durham led 44-26.

"Once it started going bad I saw our body language turn completely. The confidence wasn't there nearly what it was in the first half," Remmers said.

The RedHawks, who had three and sometimes four sophomores on the court at a time, outscored the Trojans 11-9 in the fourth quarter but it was too little, too late.

Yerxa and Martin were the only two starters remaining after seven players were kicked off the team last week for violating the school's athletic code, and stepped into much larger roles on the court and in the locker room.

"Tyler and I felt like we were sort of on an island but it's nice to see those guys come up and perform like they have," Yerxa said.

Martin finished the game with four points and six rebounds while battling against Durham's towering post players.

Yerxa scored 17 points and collected six rebounds before fouling out with a little less than two minutes remaining in the game. In the first 20 games of the season Yerxa made just three 3-pointers but went 4-for-5 from long range on Friday.

The RedHawks switched to a zone defense after the roster changes and it has been an interesting experience for the veteran players, Yerxa said. The roster now consists of five sophomores, two juniors and three seniors.

"(Remmers) has also done a good job with them. We sort of had to start over in practice and we broke it down real simple," he said.

Phillips nearly made the varsity team at the start of the season but Remmers decided to leave him on the junior-varsity squad to develop as a player.

"It couldn't have come at a better time for him to be up here, because he's got the physical tools to play. He's physical, he's aggressive and he knows the game," Remmers said.

The sophomore forward scored 11 points and added nine rebounds in his second varsity game.

Sophomore Eric Barerra, who began the season on varsity, and newcomer Hayden Bailey played the majority of the game. Barerra scored two points, grabbed six rebounds and blocked a shot. Bailey, a 5-7 guard, sank a three-pointer and swiped a steal.

The RedHawks played first-place Willows High on the road Tuesday, and host Trinity High on Saturday.

CONTACT Kirk Barron at 458-2121 or kbarron@tcnpress.com.